Widmerpool views

Widmerpool

Some pictures of the Widmerpool Station area over the years.

Following closure Widmerpool Station was subsequently converted into a pub with little sympathy for its railway origins. Called rather inappropriately 'The Schooner Inn' the author remembers visiting it as a youth. It has since been further built upon and is now called 'The Pullman Inn ' and the author can thoroughly recommend the cooking having lunched there on a number of occasions. Note- in March 2010 it appears to have closed.

The 115¼ Milepost has been preserved in its original position and is now next to the bar. The original Down platform waiting shelter survives and until the recent upgrade was used as a store/laboratory and is probably the only remaining untouched Midland Railway building on the line.

It also had a large timber-built goods shed to the south on the Up side as seen on the early photos

In 2022 the building was demolished

Click on the picture for a bigger image - all pictures are the author's unless otherwise credited

	Widmerpool station looking south from the road bridge around 1945. Note the wagons in the yard, the gas lamps on the platforms, the nameboard under the eaves, the LMS notice boards with adverts of far away places and the station clock showing 1.20 p.m. White paint is still evident on the corners of the building, probably from the blackout days of the war. Stations UK
	A slightly different view of Widmerpool station looking south on Sunday 31st July 1955. Note the absence of any traffic in the yard. Usually there would be a number of coaches stored in the sidings and loops awaiting summer excursion trains but presumably they were being used on this day Unknown
	This is the weighbridge building at the rear of the station as it was in 1961. It has since been demolished but the telegraph pole, which can be seen in the 1945 photo at the top of the page, is still there in 2010. Unknown		These are the Up side station buildings as they were in 1961. All the station fittings had been removed by this time 12 years after closure. Unknown
	By 1963 they were becoming derelict as seen is this view from the approach road. Unknown		However by 1965 they had been added to and refurbished to become the Schooner Inn. Unknown
	The rear of the Schooner Inn is seen here from a passing train in 1966. Note the goods shed in the background M J Chapman		The Down platform in 1966 M J Chapman
	Pictured from across the line c1975 David Ford Collection
	The Down side waiting room at Widmerpool photographed in the summer of 1999. Although the building has been used in the past as a laboratory it is virtually as-built MR with a tiled floor, original doors (behind the blue hardboard) and an original roof.
	The white-painted former Up platform building at Widmerpool is now the 'Pullman Inn'. Its outward appearance bears little resemblance to the original Midland Railway architecture. The fencing is new but the platform face is original. The site of the cattle dock and end-loading bay can be made out on the site (not on the photo), as can the foundations of the old weighbridge office at the rear of the present car park.
	By September 2000 the forthcoming upgrade was beginning to take shape. The original overhead wires have been removed in this view from the road overbridge and plant & machinery has moved in by the goods shed.		By May 2001 the goods shed had gone and the double track was in place, awaiting the wires. Paul Frost (Parsons Brinckerhoff)
	A view in June 2001 from the road overbridge shows the new railway awaiting the final overhead wiring on the Up line.		By July 2001 the wiring for both lines was in place. Paul Frost (Parsons Brinckerhoff)
	A different viewpoint in June 2001 shows the removal of the Down platform but the retention of the building. Note that only the right hand former Down line is electrified at this time. Anyone buying a pint in the Pullman Inn would have a grandstand view of any passing test trains		Looking North from the road overbridge sees the double track disappearing towards the southern portal of Stanton Tunnel. One of the original overbridges on this stretch was removed for the upgrade.
	A mile or so down the line looking back towards Widmerpool Station in May 2001 during the upgrade. Paul Frost (Parsons Brinckerhoff)		A close up view of the bridge above, looking north with the masts in place. Note the newly-raised portion in the centre of the parapet. Paul Frost (Parsons Brinckerhoff)
	Further up the line towards Folly Hall, the A46 road bridge is seen in the summer of 1999. The overhead structures for the scaled equipment can be seen on the bridge. As part of the upgrade these are now replaced with the real thing, but the portal frame has been retained and the view remains the same.
	A view looking north from MP 115 in the summer of 1999. The goods shed on the right was still in existence at this date but has now been demolished and the line is double track again.
	A recent aerial view of the former station buildings and approach road Google		A recent aerial view of the station buildings Google
	The Down side waiting room at Widmerpool photographed in June 2009. Although the building has seen better days it still survives virtually intact. Perhaps MRC at Butterley should save it and move it to Swanwick Junction.		Looking to the south from the Pullman Inn car park at the former station in June 2009. All very modern but under-used
	The building is in a remarkable state of preservation as this recent photographs of 12th March 2010 shows		The Pullman Inn appeared to be closed on a wet 12th March 2010 but after re-opening it is closed (2018)
	Alstom's viewing platform survives but there's not much to see these days		Looking north towards the station buildings on 12th March 2010
	Looking south from the cattle dock location on 12th March 2010		Looking from the viewing platform area - note the large dip in the tracks under the bridge
	The sad sight of the Pullman Inn boarded up in early 2022 and rumoured to be shortly demolished Nottingham Evening Post		Demolition in August 2022 Dane Alexander - Nottingham Live
	Demolition in August 2022 Dane Alexander - Nottingham Live		The site cleared - a view from the road bridge Lowdhamstation

Following closure of the business, Network Rail purchased the building and surrounding land in order to secure access to the test track infrastructure. The building was unused from 2016 to 2022.

Pictures from the scene show bulldozers and heaps of debris just outside of The Pullman Pub, in Station Road, in the village of Widmerpool, Rushcliffe. The demolition was approved by Rushcliffe Borough Council on June 7. Network Rail, which owns the land and applied for the demolition, argued the old pub had become a target, presenting a safety risk to the nearby Network Rail test track.

The buildings were demolished in August 2022

Back to Then & Now Index

Back to Main Index